- Jan 12, 2012
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I'm thinking of entering my JG in the PPBA show this Jan. There is a district meet...

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Looking forward to what you find out. I am getting Birchen and Blue CM eggs this spring. I have never had much luck with Marans eggs, even when I picked the up.Has anyone ever heard of sanding hatching eggs?
The Empordanesa eggs Deb was hatching did not hatch either. Someone from another thread emailed me saying her
shipped Marans eggs never hatched well until she learned about the sanding process. I have to try and find the Hatchathon thread. She said it was on page one.
Yeah it was Gabbard farms. I am going to email her again.My suggestion would be to use the weighing method. I just did some googling on hatching Marans eggs and there were people that thought the dry method leads to shrink wrapping. If you weigh the eggs and then follow the weight loss guide, you will have the correct air cell development. It is more work, but with the amount spent on these eggs if may be worth it. After you used this method for a hatch or two, you would have a better idea of what humidity you need to use for those eggs and your incubator.
The ones that I incubated from My Pet Chicken were all duds, rotten and not fertile. There were no chicks to get sticky. They should have refunded your money or given you a credit to buy chicks in the spring from.
Before I sanded the eggs, I would try the spray method--You spray them with water once a day. I would also not incubate them at less than 35% humidity. That is a cause of them not absorbing the yolk, which is what make them sticky--yellow yolk all around them.![]()
One tip I found said you just sand over the air cell. The guide I saw last year had stripes going down the egg in rows. I still think the problem with the eggs is fertility and shipping damage.
I have a question that I'm sure you folks will know the answer.
When I'm reaching in to turn these eggs the air in the bator doesn't seem that warm. Granted I do so much canning I've developed a tolerance to high temps. but it seems that sticking my hand in there when therms read 101 it should feel warmer. Humidity at 35 so it's not really dry air.
Day 2 and I'm already wondering if I'm doing it right.
100 or 101 does not feel that hot. so you are probably good.I have three thermometers in with them. Middle therm, about middle egg height, is an ovulation therm and is holding steady at 100°
Set the majority of the eggs in the morning, then added newly layed as I collected them yesterday.
I guess I've just gotten used to handeling jars that are 140° or more.
I'll be there, haven't sent in my entry yet. I have to take a look and see who wasn't wiped out by the rivers of mud from the torrential rains!Stockton Stockton cha-cha-cha! Pips n Peeps started a thread for pre-sales for the Stockton show - https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...on-ca-pacific-poultry-breeders-show-1-25-1-27 (yes, I added my available birds)![]()
There is a separate thread for show discussions too - the link above is just for posting available or wanted birds.
Hope to see a lot of you there!